


an unforgivable show of weakness

by Chet_Un_Gwan



Series: Whumptober 2020 [13]
Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: Asthma, Chemical Pneumonia, M/M, Whumptober 2020, smoke, though not really because it's alien asthma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2020-10-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:34:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26992240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chet_Un_Gwan/pseuds/Chet_Un_Gwan
Summary: Day thirteen: Breathe in breathe out. Delayed drowning/Chemical pneumonia/Oxygen mask
Relationships: Cassander Timaeus Berenice/Ibex
Series: Whumptober 2020 [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1956517
Kudos: 2





	an unforgivable show of weakness

Ibex didn’t notice that Cass was lagging behind for too long.

He would have liked to blame his concussion, but in truth, he had been trying to ignore Cassander’s presence since the previous night. He couldn’t believe that he had leaned up against them, as if searching for comfort. No, not as if. In his tired and muddled state, he had been looking for comfort, and he had found it in them. It was an unforgivable show of weakness. No matter how competent they had shown themselves to be, he couldn’t rely on someone like that.

That they had come back for him had more to do with their own clear sense of morality than any loyalty. Ibex knew that. But unfortunately, he could not control his own emotions from reacting to such an act.

Which is why he had decided to ignore their presence. He had always known that he could not control his own emotions, but he could control his reactions to them. And while he had clearly slipped up last night, he did not have to do so again.

So as they hiked further inland, away from the city they had escaped, Ibex tried his best to pretend that he hiked alone.

He focused on his breathing, in and out, and tried to suppress his lingering nausea. It wasn’t especially difficult, but it did provide something for him to focus on. The trees passed quickly, and when smoke from the city blew in their direction, it was just something else to focus on breathing around.

He didn’t notice when Cassander slowed down, lingering behind. He didn’t notice when they started breathing hard, harder than they should have been. He almost didn’t notice when they stopped entirely. He only turned back because he had been using their footsteps as a rhythm for his own breathing, acid comment about their endurance prepared.

When he turned, he saw Cass gasping at the smokey air, their vestigial gills flaring pinkly against their scales. Ibex was stunned for a moment, unsure of how to react. They gasped again, air dragging roughly into their lungs, and he sprung forward to try and help.

It was almost as if they were choking, but on nothing. Ibex scrambled to clear the collar of their shirt away from their neck, franticly trying to think of what could be causing this. They had been hiking, yes, but was that enough exertion to cause this? Did Cassander have asthma? _Could_ Apostolosians have asthma?

They wheezed, and tried to say something. Ibex focused, trying to read their lips. _Sssm. Smooo_ … The smoke, of course. Ibex was a fool to not have considered it earlier.

He pulled them down towards the ground, where the air was clearer. Almost immediately, Cass’s gills stopped flaring wildly, though they still could not breathe easily. Ibex pulled their med kit from their bag and began to search through it. A steroid, some kind of aerosol steroid might help, if Apostolosian biology wasn’t too far from human. Ibex felt like kicking himself for not researching this kind of first aid. Even if he had thought he would never need it, he still should have made an effort to learn.

He found an inhaler, and hoped wildly that its presence meant that it could be used on Cassander. He brought it to their mouth and squeezed.

The first puff didn’t seem to bring any relief, and Ibex felt uncharacteristic panic grip him. But the second puff, Cass was able to inhale, and their breathing eased.

Ibex felt his own breath release in a sigh, as Cassander took deep, gulping breaths. They patted his arm awkwardly, still weak.

“Thank you,” they said, at a near whisper, and Ibex hated how the words made him feel.


End file.
